Conventional film and paper processing machines have difficulty in completely emptying the chemical cartridges associated with the machines. This is due to the highly coupled nature of the system since the processing machines are associated with a solution supply cartridge or arrangement that includes four independent containers that need to empty simultaneously. If a container of the cartridge contains significant retained chemistry following use, there is a possibility that the cartridge must be handled as hazardous waste.
FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a conventional solution cartridge 200. As shown in FIG. 1, solution cartridge 200 includes an outer container 2 that is adapted to hold four inner containers 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d. Each of containers 4a–4d is dedicated to a specific type of solution or chemical concentrate, for example, container 4a holds a first part of a color developer; container 4b holds a second part of a color developer; container 4c holds a third part of a color developer; and container 4d holds a stabilizer. Each of containers 4a–4d respectively include valves or necks 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d which extend from each of containers 4a–4d and pass through appropriate openings in outer container 2. In the arrangement of FIG. 1, it is preferable that the different parts of the color developer be held in separate containers (4a–4c) prior to being supplied to a processor or processing machine, since any mixture of the different parts of the developers prior to usage will degrade and adversely affect the properties of the developers.
In a conventional arrangement, cartridge 200 is adapted to be fluidly associated with a processor 10 which includes entry points or valves 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d that are adapted to be associated with each of valves or necks 6a, 6b, 6c, and 6d. Therefore the current cartridge package as noted above has four necks or valves 6a–6d that associate with four corresponding valves or entry points 12a–12d of processing machine 10. The full/empty state of cartridge 200 is sensed by the presence or absence of float, indicated by reference numerals 14a, 14b, 14c and 14d in FIG. 1, which are associated with each of valves 6a–6d. In one embodiment, an infrared beam can pass through valves 6a–6d of the cartridge 200 to detect the presence or absence of a float 14a–14d to determine the full/empty state of the individual container 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d. As further described above, four chemical concentrates are contained in four separate containers 4a–4d housed in a common outer container 2.
A drawback with the arrangement noted above is that during use of cartridge 200, developer or chemical concentrate exiting from each container 4a–4d through respective valves 6a, 6b and 6c is constantly metered and observed so as to assure that each of containers 4a–4c empty together. If they do not empty together as noted above, then at least one of the containers will include residual chemistry following use, which leads to the characterization of the handling of the container as hazardous waste.